Weather-indicating device



E. F. BAUM.

WEATHER INDICATING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 1, 1920.

1,435,445. Pateflted Nov. 14,1922.

A J i' j CHANGE v LEA CHANGE s d CLEAR STORM I B f-o e- CHANGE CLEAR Wifnesses: v v Invenfor.

Patented Nov. 14, 1922 UNITED STATES 1,435,445 PATENT OFFICE}.

nnw'nnn r. naum or wonmnnysnune, PENNSYLVANIA.

WEATHER-INDICATING DEVICE.

Ap'plicatlon filed. November 1, 1920. Serial No. 421,203.

To all whom it ma y concern Be it known that I, Enw'ARn'F. BAUM, a

citizen of the United States, residing at "Wormleysburg, in the county of Cumberland,

and State of Pennsylvania, have invented new and useful Improvements in Weather- Indicatin Devices, of which the following isa spec' cation.

My invention relates to that class of weather indicators in which a counter balanced oscillating needle, or pointer, reciprocating with a cord, contracting and ex-- ,panding as the humidity in the atmosphere increases or diminishes, moves to and fro along a dial on which words, signs or characters indicate different phases of the weather.

'lhe object of my invention is to provide a device for indicating impending changes in the weather several hours in advance of their occurrence, which shall be simple and economical in construction, compact in form,

7 durable in character. and operative in vertical,'inclined, or horizontal positions.

I obtain the object'of my'invention by th device described-in the following specifications and drawings in which similar letters refer to similar parts.-

a Figure '1 is a lplan drawing with the easing J omitted.

is a base, which may be of wood or any other suitable material. B is a needle or pointer of any desirable material, hinged on the pin 2', fastenedon or to the base A. The needle or pointer B is counter balanced in the direction of the point 7 by a spiral spring S which may be attached in any desired manner, preferably, however, to a short arm p-ro'ecting laterally at an angle at a point near the pivot end. C is a cordor string of cat gut, linen, or other hygroscopic material which shrinks and contracts in length in a moist atmosphere. One end of -the cord C is fastened at a stationary pin 6 and the other end is threaded through a transverse hole t in the key K and tied or otherwise fastened. The key K turns tightly in the hole It in the base and the cord C is wound around the shank, or unwound, as it is turned to-the right or left. L is a short thread or light cord attached securely to the needle B at n, a short distance above the bearing 5 and tied or otherwise fastened to the cord C and w. The words Clear, Change, Storm, or other words, signs or characters may be printed on, or attached to the base near the top in any othersuitable manner to constitute an indicating dial D.

In assembling my device the cord C is dried until it contains but an insignificant amount of moisture. The end of the needle B 1s movedto the point 7 which would obvi ously stand for Clear, etc. The cord C is fastened at e and to the key K. vThe key K is turned so the cord C is wound tautalong a deflected line from the point e to m and thence to K, and is attached to the needle B by the thread L.

The successful operation of my device is brought about by placing it where the atmos- .phere is unaffected by artificial heat and -where the air circulates freely. If there is an appreciable amount of humidity in the atmosphere the cord. C absorbs moisture and.

shrinks, the shrinka e var in in ro ortion to the humidity. g P D As the humidity increases the cord C continues to shrink until it is taut on a straight line from 6 to K as is indicated by dotted lines. As the cord straightens it pulls the needle B from the word Clear in the direcing from the mechanical principles invo For instance, it will be understood that cat gut is a material that shrinks by the absorption of moisture. If the cord C is a string or strip of material such as cardboard that expands and sags in damp weather the words Clear and Storm may be transposed on the dial D to co-ordinate with the reversed action thereof in relation to the needle B.

A weight may be employed instead of a spring, as shown in Fig. 2, in which similar parts correspond with similar parts and are described by the similar characters employed in Fig. 1 with the exception of W whichshows a Wei ht arranged to do the work performed by t e spring S in Fig. 1. i

Fig. 3, shows the mechanism protected by a cover. A, represents the base. J, isa casing having therein an opening or slot 0, through which the end of the pointer B may be observed in its transitions. D is a dial having'on the face thereof suitable words,

and signals f, f, f, indicating changes'in the weather and the regulating key K. The casing J may be of any desired material preferably a piece of flat, or suitably formed sheet metal, which may be attached to the base A in any convenient manner to cover and protect the mechanical parts and at the same time provide for a free circulation of air.

What I claim as m invention is:

1. In a weather in icating device, a base, a dial having weather indicati characters thereon and a counter balance pointer or needle cooperating therewith, oscillating on a fixed bearing and linked by means of a thread or cable to a string or strip of hygroscopic material, mounted in relation thereto and fastened at each end to said base, the

link and needle being actuated by the lateral movements of the hygroscopic cord or stri as it relaxes or contracts when variously a fected by the absorption or discharge of moisture. v

2. In a weather indicating device the base A, the needle B oscillating on the in i and suitably connected by means of the ink L to the cord C, fastened to the stationary pin e and the regulating key K; the counter balancin spring S, in combination with the dial provided with indicating characters, substantially as described.

EDWARD F. BAUM.

Witnesses:

S. R. Sums, F. L. Hassnnnmem. 

